Hungry Hungry Fungi: How plastic pre-treatments affect fungal interaction with LDPE and PET plastics
CWSF · 2026 Environment & Climate Change Bronze Medal
Overview
This project studied how different ways of preparing plastics affect how certain types of fungi interact with plastic waste. Two common types of plastic were either applied abrasion with sandpaper or exposed to UV rays before being placed with oyster mushrooms and turkey tail fungi to see which conditions led to the most interaction. This is interesting because plastic pollution is an incredibly big problem across the world, with most plastic lasting for decades in landfills and our natural environment. Fungi are a natural living organism that can offer a completely new way to tackle this issue, and physical and chemical pre-treatments like abrasion and ultraviolet exposure can make that process even more effective. This matters because using fungi to weaken plastic over time is a natural and low-cost approach that could one day work alongside existing recycling and waste management strategies to help reduce plastic waste.
Awards (2)
- Bronze Medal
- Selected for CWSF 2026
Competition history
- CWSF 2026
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